Graduate student Kelsey Lehman takes a photo of graduate students Deanna Burbank, left, and Deanna Swan on April 21, 2014, at the Rock on Farm Lane. The Rock was previously painted in memory of Lacey Holsworth with messages from Spartans on it. Erin Hampton/The State News
An unidentified group has painted over a memorial at the rock on Farm Lane for 8-year-old Spartan basketball fan Lacey Holsworth.
As of Monday morning, the Rock was covered in a fresh coat of white paint with a message that reads: "Congratulations graduates...be a hero to someone" in green lettering.
So far, no one has claimed responsibility for the message.
Although the University Activities Board has a Rock-signing event scheduled for graduating seniors this Friday, the group's assistant director Stephanie Bierlein-Calloway said they were not responsible. UAB members were planning to wait until Friday to paint the Rock, she said.
Nearly a thousand students gathered at the Rock the night after Lacey's death, signing messages in her tribute. Men's basketball head coach Tom Izzo spoke at the event alongside members of the team, including former senior forward Adreian Payne.
“Princess Lacey,” as she was nicknamed, made national headlines during the past two basketball seasons for her friendship with Payne. She often referred to the 6-foot-10 senior as her “big brother.”
Thousands gathered at Breslin Center this past Thursday to pay a final tribute to Lacey. The memorial celebration featured a silent dunk from basketball team members, as well as a home video of Lacey giving encouragement to other children battling cancer.
"Just keep believing in God," she said in the video.
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